Holiday Entitlement

[korvin karbon]

Hi, just a quick query. Can an employer dictate when you have to take a portion of your holidays? For example if they were to close the business for a few days, do they have the right to tell you that you have to use some of your holiday allowance to cover those days of?

cheers

 

[rik_uk3]

This might help

When can you take your holidays?

You do not have the absolute right to choose when you take your holiday. Your employer can tell you when to take your leave, and can also stop you taking your holiday at particular times of the year.

If you are requesting a holiday, you must give your employer sufficient notice. This must be twice the number of days of leave that will be taken.

Your employer must give you the same period of notice if he or she is telling you when you must take your holiday.

However while your employer can refuse your request for a holiday, you cannot turn down your employer's instruction to take leave.

So if you want five days holiday you must give your employer ten days notice, or if your employer is telling you that you must take one day's holiday then two day's notice is required.

If your employer wants to rule out some periods for holiday requests the notice required is the same as the period during which holidays cannot be taken. In other words if the employer wants to stop people taking holidays for the four-week period before Christmas, then four weeks notice must be given.

http://www.tuc.org.uk/tuc/rights_takeabreak.cfm#When_can_you_take_your_holidays

 

[Chainsaw]

I think so if it's in yer contract (which you can always choose not to sign )

I used to work in edinburgh and we used to have to close for 2 weeks during the trades holidays. Tunnocks still close for the glasgow fair too AFAIR.

Cheers,

Alan

 

[reddy]

Best bet is to give ACAS a call, it can all depend on what's in your contract/ agreed with your employers etc. They are a well known organisation that deal with employment disputes all the time, and there service is free bar the cost of a call (bit like citizans advice organisation, that kind of thing). When you ring them for advise you don't have to give your name or anything, just tell them what's happened and they will advise correctly and in accordance with the law/ your rights.

http://www.acas.org.uk/


The phone number should be in the website somewhere, and is in the Yellow pages under employment services or something like that.

 

[korvin karbon]

cheers guys.

i have to take 3 days of my leave for the period between christmas and new year, i would rather have it unpaid so i can actually have 2 fortnights off LOL, mind you the amount of flexi time i have means i have nearly a month owed to me. Company policy though is if you decide to hand in your notice you lose your flexi time???